JP2014185615A - Water pump - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a water pump capable of being applied in any mounting attitude.SOLUTION: A water pump is provided with a rotating shaft 15 supported by a body 11 through a bearing 13, an impeller 18 mounted on one end of the rotating shaft 15 for conveying fluid, a seal member 19 disposed over the rotating shaft 15 and the body 11 at a position between the impeller 18 and the bearing 13, a fluid entering portion 20 disposed in a state of surrounding the circumference of the rotating shaft 15 in an area at a side opposite to the impeller 18 through the seal member 19, of the body 11, and receiving fluid entering from the seal member 19, a plurality of reserving portions 23 distributed along the circumferential direction of the rotating shaft 15 at an outer side with respect to the fluid entering portion 20, and a drain flow channel 21 communicated with at least one of the plurality of reserving portions 23 from the fluid entering portion 20 to discharge the fluid of the fluid entering portion 20.

Description

  The present invention relates to a cooling water pump used in an internal combustion engine (engine) such as an automobile.

  A conventional water pump has a rotating shaft supported by a body via a bearing, an impeller at one end of the rotating shaft, a mechanical seal across the rotating shaft and the body, and an impeller sandwiching the mechanical seal in the body. In the opposite region, a fluid entry part that receives fluid that has entered from the mechanical seal, a fluid reservoir provided at a lower part of the body and outside the fluid entry part, and a drain that communicates the fluid entry part and the reservoir part There has been known one provided with a flow path and a steam discharge port for discharging the evaporated fluid from the upper part of the body to the outside (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

The mechanical seal prevents liquid leakage while relatively sliding the seal member fixed on the rotating shaft side and the seal member fixed on the body side. For this reason, it is inevitable that fluid leaks from the impeller side to the bearing side of the rotary shaft through a slight gap between the seal members.
According to the technique described in Patent Document 1, the condensed liquid component out of the fluid leaking from the mechanical seal is stored in the reservoir through the drain passage from the fluid entry portion. On the other hand, vaporized vapor of the fluid is discharged to the outside through the vapor discharge port from the fluid entry portion.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 6-23760

  This type of water pump is usually attached to the outer surface of the engine block, but depending on the arrangement of the engine and engine peripheral parts, there may be restrictions on the mounting posture. For example, it is conceivable to dispose the water pump obliquely with respect to the engine block in order to avoid interference with peripheral components.

In this case, in the conventional water pump, since the position of the reservoir of the body is not positioned vertically downward, the liquid leaked from the mechanical seal is not discharged from the drain channel to the reservoir, and the bearing of the rotary shaft There is a risk that liquid will enter the inside of the bearing. As a result, grease emulsification or metal rusting may occur, which may impair the function of the water pump.
In addition, depending on the mounting posture of the body, there is a disadvantage that the liquid component is discharged from the steam discharge port that is open to the atmosphere, causing a problem of fluid leakage.
An object of this invention is to provide the water pump applicable to all attachment attitude | positions in view of the said background.

  The characteristic configuration of the water pump according to the present invention includes a rotating shaft supported on a body via a bearing, an impeller provided at one end of the rotating shaft, and a position between the impeller and the bearing. And a seal member provided across the rotary shaft and the body, and in a state of surrounding the rotary shaft in a region on the opposite side of the impeller across the seal member of the body, A fluid entry portion that receives the fluid that has entered from the seal member; a plurality of reservoir portions that are dispersedly disposed along the circumferential direction of the rotating shaft outside the fluid entry portion; And a drain flow path that communicates with at least one of the reservoirs and discharges the fluid in the fluid entry part.

  According to this configuration, the fluid leaking beyond the seal member between the impeller and the bearing in the water pump passes through the drain channel and flows into the reservoir on the downstream side of the drain channel. Since a plurality of the reservoirs are arranged along the circumferential direction of the rotating shaft, the fluid can be reliably discharged to any one of the reservoirs regardless of the mounting posture of the body.

  The drain channel does not need to communicate with all of the reservoirs distributed in the circumferential direction, and the drain passage may be communicated with the reservoir located at the lowest position in accordance with the mounting posture of the body. Therefore, it is not necessary to change the arrangement of the reservoir every time the mounting posture of the body is changed, and the water pump member can be shared, so that the number of manufacturing steps and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

  In the water pump according to the present invention, the steam existing in the fluid entry part is discharged over a reservoir part and the fluid entry part different from those provided with the drain flow path among the plurality of reservoir parts. It is preferable that a steam flow path is formed.

In addition to the fluid flowing in the fluid entry portion, the fluid comes into contact with the rotating shaft or the like that has become hot and generates steam. In order to discharge this vapor, it is convenient to use the reservoir.
Vapor discharge is facilitated by connecting a reservoir and a fluid entry part different from those provided with a drain channel as in this configuration. In other words, in the case of a reservoir portion into which fluid flows, it is necessary to press-fit a plug or the like to prevent outflow to the outside. If connected, it communicates with the outside.
Thus, since the reservoir can be utilized as the steam discharge space, the members can be shared regardless of the mounting posture of the body.

  In the water pump of the present invention, it is preferable that the plurality of reservoirs are evenly disposed along the circumferential direction of the body.

  By arranging a plurality of reservoirs equally as in this configuration, even if the mounting posture of the body changes, any one reservoir is easily located below the bearing. Therefore, the fluid can be reliably discharged to the reservoir regardless of the mounting posture of the body.

It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the principal part of the water pump in this embodiment. It is the II-II sectional view taken on the line in FIG. It is the III-III sectional view taken on the line of FIG. 1 in another embodiment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of a water pump according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the present embodiment, as an example, a description will be given as a water pump 1 for circulating cooling water equipped in a vehicle engine (an example of a drive mechanism). However, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

  The water pump 1 circulates cooling water as a fluid to, for example, a vehicle engine and a radiator (not shown). The cooling water is warmed by the heat generated by the engine, and cools the engine by releasing heat from the radiator.

  As shown in FIG. 1, in the water pump 1, the body 11 is fixed to the engine block 12 with bolts 24. A rotating shaft 15 is supported on the body 11 via a bearing 13. An impeller 18 for conveying cooling water (an example of a fluid) is provided at one end of the rotating shaft 15, and a drive pulley 16 is fixed to the other end via a pulley bracket 17. A mechanical seal 19 (an example of a seal member) is disposed between the body 11 and the rotary shaft 15 between the impeller 18 and the bearing 13 so that the cooling water does not leak from the gap between the rotary shaft 15. Yes. Although not shown, the driving pulley 16 may be rotated from the crank pulley via a timing belt, or a driving force may be obtained from an electric motor.

  The bearing 13 is configured by a ball bearing, and includes a rolling part 25 formed of a spherical body, an outer peripheral wall part 26 on the outside via the rolling part 25, and lip seal parts 14 at both ends in the axial direction. ing. Grease is applied to the rolling part 25 so that the rotating shaft 15 rotates smoothly. The lip seal portion 14 prevents grease from leaking out and iron scraps and the like from entering the bearing 13. The bearing 13 is not limited to a ball bearing, and may take any form such as a sliding bearing.

  When the rotary shaft 15 is driven by the drive pulley 16, the impeller 18 rotates and the cooling water is sucked from the cooling water inlet and discharged from the cooling water outlet. At this time, a minute gap between the mechanical seal 19 and the rotary shaft 15 is formed in the fluid entry portion 20 arranged in a state of surrounding the rotary shaft 15 in the region between the mechanical seal 19 and the bearing 13. Cool water leaks through.

The cooling water leaked from the mechanical seal 19 is divided into vapor that is transferred from the rotating shaft 15 and the body 11 that have become high temperature due to rotation and vaporized, and liquid that is condensed with the vapor.
In addition, the fluid in this invention is defined as what contains a liquid component and a vapor | steam among cooling water, and it demonstrates as a fluid except the case where it needs to classify | separate especially hereafter.

  The fluid that has entered from the mechanical seal 19 is received by a fluid entry portion 20 that is disposed in a state surrounding the rotary shaft 15 in a region of the body 11 opposite to the impeller 18 across the mechanical seal 19.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the liquid content in the received fluid is perpendicular to the plurality of reservoirs 23 that are dispersedly arranged in the circumferential direction of the rotary shaft 15 outside the fluid entry portion 20. It is discharged via the drain channel 21 to the reservoir 23a located below.
In general, in the water pump 1, the driving force from the crankshaft is transmitted via a driving pulley 16 formed outside the body 11. Between the inner peripheral side of the drive pulley 16 and the outer peripheral side of the rotating shaft 15, there is a portion that is normally formed as a space portion, and the space is also large. By effectively utilizing this space and distributing the reservoirs 23 along the circumferential direction of the rotating shaft 15, it is not necessary to provide a new space for the reservoirs 23, so that the apparatus becomes compact.

The side of the reservoir 23a opposite to the impeller 18 is opened, and the plug 28 is press-fitted and fixed so that the liquid component is not discharged to the outside. A drain hole 29 communicating with the outside of the body 11 is formed above the reservoir 23a. In the present embodiment, the drain hole 29 is formed above the plug 28.
For this reason, the liquid discharged to the reservoir 23a is not basically discharged to the outside, but is discharged to the outside from the drain hole 29 only when the allowable storage amount of the reservoir 23a is exceeded. Further, since the liquid discharged to the reservoir 23a is transferred from the body 11 that has become high temperature to become steam, the reservoir 23a is formed with a volume that can secure a predetermined storage amount.
The plug 28 may be any plug as long as it seals the opening of the reservoir 23a, for example, by closing the opening of the reservoir 23a by screw fastening provided with a seal member. Moreover, evaporation may be promoted by providing a planar member with good water absorption inside the reservoir 23a and increasing the surface area.

  Further, the steam of the fluid is discharged through a steam flow path 22 formed between the reservoir 23 b positioned in the vertical direction of the plurality of reservoirs 23 and the fluid entry unit 20. Moreover, since the opposite side to the impeller 18 of the reservoir part 23b is opened, the vapor | steam which flowed into the reservoir part 23b is discharged | emitted outside. At this time, the liquid condensed by the vapor coming into contact with the wall surface of the reservoir 23 b is returned to the fluid entry unit 20 and stored in the reservoir 23 a via the drain channel 21.

  As shown in FIG. 2, in this embodiment, reservoirs 23 c and 23 d that are distributed and arranged at equal intervals along the circumferential direction of the body 11 are provided in addition to the reservoirs 23 a and 23 b. For example, when the mounting posture of the body 11 is changed 90 degrees clockwise, the reservoir 23a is replaced by the reservoir 23d and the reservoir 23b is replaced by the reservoir 23c, so that the position of the reservoir 23 does not change after all. .

  As shown in FIG. 1, the outer peripheral side of the rotary shaft 15 is arranged in the order of the bearing 13, the body 11, and the reservoir 23. When the rotating shaft 15 rotates, a centrifugal force is applied to the bearing 13 so as to be slightly displaced outward, but this centrifugal force propagates from the body 11 to the reservoir 23. At this time, the members forming the reservoir 23 are evenly arranged along the circumferential direction of the body 11, and the propagation path is not biased. For this reason, since the receiving mode of the bearing 13 is stable and rattling of the body 11 is suppressed, the reaction force received from the body 11 against the centrifugal force applied to the bearing 13 is substantially constant. There is no excessive load.

On the other hand, the fluid leaking from the mechanical seal 19 may enter the rolling part 25 through a slight gap in the lip seal part 14. For this reason, it is preferable to provide the inlet of the drain channel 21 below the lip seal portion 14.
In this embodiment, since the reservoirs 23 are provided at four locations along the circumferential direction of the body 11, any one reservoir 23 can always be provided below the fluid entry unit 20. Therefore, regardless of the mounting posture of the body 11, the fluid can be received by any reservoir 23.

In the present embodiment, the assembly posture of the body 11 with respect to the engine block 12 is determined in consideration of the arrangement of the engine and peripheral components. At this time, among the reservoirs 23, the reservoir 23a located at the lowermost position in the vertical direction becomes the liquid storage space, and the reservoir 23b positioned at the uppermost location becomes the vapor discharge space. Next, the plug 28 is press-fitted and fixed in the reservoir portion 23 a of the liquid storage space, and a cutting tool such as a drill is inserted into the fluid entry portion 20 to form the drain passage 21 and the vapor passage 22.
Therefore, it is not necessary to change the member of the water pump 1 according to the mounting posture of the body 11. A communication path that communicates with all the reservoirs 23 may be formed in advance, and any one of the communication paths may be used as the drain channel 21 and the steam channel 22.

[Another embodiment]
In the above-described embodiment, four reservoirs 23 are provided along the circumferential direction of the body 11, but two reservoirs 23 may be provided as shown in FIG. In this case, the reservoir 23 has an oval shape in a cross-sectional view perpendicular to the axis so that the inlet of the drain channel 21 can always be formed below the lip seal 14 even if the mounting posture of the body 11 changes. It is preferable to form it. In this case, since the volume of the liquid storage space of the reservoir 23a is formed large, it is possible to more reliably prevent the fluid from entering the bearing 13.

[Other Embodiments]
(1) In the above embodiment, four or two reservoirs 23 are provided. For example, three reservoirs may be provided, or five or more reservoirs 23 may be provided. When four or more locations are provided, two reservoirs 23 can be used as the liquid storage space, so that a large storage amount can be secured.
(2) In the above embodiment, the plurality of reservoirs 23 are arranged uniformly along the circumferential direction of the body 11, but they need not necessarily be arranged at regular intervals.
(3) In the above embodiment, an example in which the side of the reservoir 23 opposite to the impeller 18 is opened is shown, but the outer peripheral side of the reservoir 23 may be opened. In this case, since the upper part of the reservoir 23b (steam discharge space) is open, the steam is smoothly released into the atmosphere. For this reason, it is reduced that a vapor | steam contacts with the wall part of the storage part 23, and is condensed and becomes a liquid component.
(4) In the above embodiment, the drain hole 29 is formed in the body 11, but the drain hole may be formed in the plug 28 attached to the opening of the reservoir 23.

  The water pump according to the present invention can be used for a water pump used for a wide range of cooling objects in various vehicles.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Water pump 11 Body 13 Bearing 15 Rotating shaft 18 Impeller 19 Mechanical seal (seal member)
20 Fluid entry part 21 Drain flow path 22 Steam flow path 23 Reservoir

Claims (3)

A rotating shaft supported by a body via a bearing;
An impeller provided at one end of the rotating shaft and carrying a fluid;
A seal member provided across the rotating shaft and the body at a position between the impeller and the bearing;
A fluid ingress portion that receives the fluid that has entered from the seal member, arranged in a state of surrounding the periphery of the rotation shaft in a region opposite to the impeller across the seal member of the body;
A plurality of reservoirs dispersedly arranged along the circumferential direction of the rotating shaft outside the fluid entry part; and
A water pump provided with a drain flow path communicating with at least one of the plurality of reservoirs from the fluid entry portion and discharging the fluid in the fluid entry portion.   A steam flow path for discharging steam existing in the fluid entry part is formed across the reservoir part and the fluid entry part different from those provided with the drain channel among the plurality of reservoir parts. Item 2. The water pump according to Item 1.   The water pump according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the plurality of reservoirs are evenly arranged along a circumferential direction of the body.

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